Mousetrap Car — 7 Improvements Over Thingiverse Original

Overview

Inspired by this Thingiverse design, this redesign was created for use in school and STEM experiments. The goal was to improve the reliability and repeatability of the original — making a car that performs consistently across multiple trap types without jamming or rolling back.

The 7 Improvements

1. Solid-spoke wheels — the original open spokes allowed the lever arm to drop into the wheel mid-run, instantly stopping the car; solid faces prevent this
2. Lever arm cradle — a printed cradle positions the lever arm (the spring-loaded bar) and clips it securely to the trap’s drive bar before launch
3. Universal chassis cradles — front and rear cradles are symmetrical and designed to clear both trap styles: plastic cheese-bait pedal traps and brass bait-bar traps
4. Drive axle string-release — a printed catch on the drive axle snags the loop knot at the end of the wound string; when the string reaches full extension, the knot releases cleanly instead of reversing the axle direction and braking the car
5. Revised wheel hub — printed filament pins lock the hub to the axle, replacing glue
6. Reduced drive axle friction — bearing surface geometry optimized at the chassis contact points
7. Wider wheelbase — improves straight-line tracking on smooth floors

Print Settings

• Printer: Bambu A1 Mini with AMS
• Filament: Bambu PLA Matte
• Layer height: 0.2mm
• Infill: 15% gyroid

Files

Print files are published on MakerWorld.